There are a few small words that should strike terror in a leader. They can destroy a team, derail a major change programme, even kill an organisation... “I don’t trust him/her”. In this article Steve talks about how the lack of trust among team members is so much more damaging than many organisations realise.

The lack of trust may be driven by clash of personalities, conflicting agendas, or lack of understanding - it is not always about someone’s character or integrity, but it can be corrosive.

I know an organisation where two Senior Directors dislike each other, they avoid going to meetings they know the other is attending, they jockey for position, team members who work with ‘the enemy’ are interrogated, “Why did you talk to him? Why did you let him into the office?” Between them they share responsibility for millions of pounds of key investment and there is no way they will commit to a joined-up, effective strategy.

I know another organisation where the CEO sacked a Senior Director who was doing a great job in her own area, but was not acting as a team player. The CEO recognised that without high calibre corporate working, her desire to raise performance in the organisation would fail. A senior player who did not trust her colleagues and, in turn, could not be trusted was ultimately a liability. The CEO realised the essential truth that it is the leader’s role to address dysfunction.

Increasingly, as organisations look to be more effective, we notice the need to ‘mind the gap’. There are many ‘grey bits’ in an organisation, many areas of shared responsibility.

Organisations need managers who can collaborate effectively and manage the gaps between them. They need to share accountability for results. As soon as we get into a situation where one side blames the other, refuses to share information, or under-contributes, we get inefficiency.

Doris Kearns Goodwin’s fascinating book Team of Rivals describes President Abraham Lincoln’s incredible ability to bring a cabinet team together - three of whom had stood against him for the Presidential nomination, and another of whom had humiliated him in a legal dispute. Lincoln continuously put the needs of the nation first, working hard to gain agreement on some of the most contentious issues that had ever faced his country. His wisdom in leading “the rivals” to collaborate on driving huge change is an exemplary tale of wise leadership.

Trust is destroyed when people jump to conclusions or make assumptions about others. It happens when people conceal weaknesses or issues, or hesitate to ask for help or act. It is a lack of respect. Do you see any of these vulnerabilities in your team?

Patrick Lencioni writes: “Trust is the confidence among team members that their peers’ intentions are good and that there is no need to be constrained or careful around the group”

And, in his book Leading Teams: Setting the Stage for Great Performances,  J. Richard Hackman says: “Research consistently shows that teams under-perform despite all the extra resources they have. That’s because problems with coordination and motivation typically chip away at the benefits of collaboration”

Lack of trust and lack of hands-on leadership would seem to create this under-performance.

I strongly believe that a team without trust is like a body heading for a heart attack. We may not know when the heart attack will happen, but we know it could be fatal.

In these challenging times trust is more important than ever. When you move forward you need to know people are truly with you. Leaders need, like Lincoln did, to ensure people are on board, committed to the greater good, and able to discuss their concerns openly but commit to agreed actions.

Address distrust quickly, robustly and forcefully - it’s a killer!

© Caret, 2009. All Rights Reserved

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